I knew him though. He appeared cold, but he was running the numbers through his mind, assessing the possibility of what he could do to help. Damiyen, although cunning and shrewd in his business, had a soft spot for omegas. He’s one of the few people inside the city who actually had a birth mother, rather than being formed inside a test tube. His mother had been raped by one of the city guards, an omega brutalized within the sanctuary. He’d been forced away from her arms and he’d found out about her years later, only to watch her die of a sickness that could have been easily treated if the city had funded adequate medical care for the omegas living there.
He’d always hated the sanctuary for that very reason and had done his best to smuggle in supplies through his various connections to help them survive the city’s brutal treatment. He was a big reason why the omega underground was so successful in gathering resources.
“What’s in it for me?” he asked prudently.
“There’s an omega. Her name is Nikki. She’s their leader,” I answered.
“Unclaimed?” he asked.
“Indeed,” I replied.
His grin grew.
“You want her too,” he observed, and I chuckled.
“She’s a strong one. She’d going to need more than one man to teach her what it means to submit to her mates,” I offered, and he grinned. Cocking his head, he stared at me. I stayed silent. I knew that he was deciding whether it was worth it or not.
It was unheard of for an alpha to offer a beta rights to an omega, but here I was. Nikki was unclaimed and I’d already decided she was mine, but I’d be willing to share her with Damiyen if he could help me free her and the rest of her kind. His gaze appraised my expression, trying to figure out if I was truthfully offering him such a thing.
“You’d do that for me?”
“I would,” I answered, meeting his gaze firmly before I continued to speak.
“The Central Gathering would also like to offer their eternal gratitude and whatever land outside the walls that you want. They have left it to me to offer whatever monetary compensation you require for helping us to acquire allies in the more sympathetic beta sector. We’d need weapons for the omegas and a place to train them. We need you, Damiyen,” I added sincerely.
Without him, I feared our demise and the eventual loss of our omegas. Most of all, I feared the loss of the feisty silver-haired omega I’d already set my sights on.
“If you fail, Philip will either kill them or use his new plan to genetically modify them all. You know that,” he replied, his tone ambiguous.
“I know. It’s a risk. But you should see them now. They’re far too skinny. They look unhealthy and there are far too many of them stuffed into that excuse of a prison. If things continue this way, they’re going to get sick. They’re going to starve and many of them will die.” I gritted my teeth. “It’s a travesty to treat an omega like that.”
He sighed.
“I know. I’ve heard whispers of worsening conditions, of guards taking advantage of them at an alarming rate. I’ve seen the bodies of the weakest of them that have already succumbed to the harsh treatment. One of them even climbed to the top of one of the apartments and jumped,” he said softly, a sense of grief apparent in the tone of his voice. I stayed silent. I knew I had to choose my words carefully now.
“It makes me angry too,” he added next, and then he turned his eyes from a spot he was studying on the floor to mine. “I’ll provide the goods, but in order for this to succeed, you need me. I’ll help you, but I want to meet her.”
I had known he would. He wouldn’t get involved unless he could be an essential part of the strategizing of such an extensive endeavor. He’d want to ensure success and with his strategic insight, our chances had just improved substantially.
“I think the two of you will get along just fine,” I replied with a smirk.
“Fat fucking chance,” he snorted, and the two of us laughed.
Damiyen didn’t take shit from anyone and Nikki would learn really fucking quick that even though he was just a beta, he was not a man to be messed with.
“When do I meet her?” he asked.
“First thing in the morning,” I answered.
“Well then, let’s go on an adventure,” he replied, and I couldn’t help but chuckle.
I couldn’t wait to see how this turned out.